Neolin
Encyclopedia
Neolin was a prophet
of the Lenni Lenape
, who was derided by the British
as "The Imposter." Beginning in 1762, Neolin believed that the native people needed to reject European goods and abandon dependency on foreign settlers in order to return to a more traditional lifestyle. He made arguments against alcohol
, materialism
, and polygamy
. Neolin emphasized that the favor of God in blessing the Indians with game to hunt would be spoiled if they did not forsake their evil collusion with the alien white men. Neolin's most famous follower was Pontiac
.
In 1761 Neolin went through a period of fasting, incantation and dreaming. It was then that he saw his purpose was to go see the Master of Life (or Great Spirit). The Master of Life told him that the path to Heaven was to reject the ways of the European Americans and to return to the traditional way of living (the ways of their ancestors). Primarily he mentions to stop drinking alcohol, participate in respectful monogamous relationships and sexual abstinence, live by the bow and arrow, and to dress themselves in animal skins.
The Master of Life also called for the American Indians to drive the British settlers out of their land. This is why he allied with Pontiac on a military campaign.
There is great resemblance between the religion that Neolin introduced to the Lenni Lenape and Christianity, probably because of the exposure of Christianity through missionaries.
Around 1761, hundreds of Ohio Indians became disciples of the Indian visionary Neolin (meaning "The Enlightened One," in Algonquian). The core of Neolin's teachings was that Indians had been corrupted by European ways and needed to purify themselves by returning to their traditions and preparing for a holy war. "Drive them out," he declared of the settlers. A confederacy of tribes organized by a group of chiefs who had gained influence by adopting Neolin's ideas laid plans for a coordinated attack against the British in the spring of 1763. The principal figure among them was the Ottawa chief Pontiac, renowned as an orator and political leader. This combination of inspirational religious and political leadership was a pattern in the long history of Indian resistance to colonial expansion in North America.
In 1762, Neolin was shown a prayer by the Master of Life, to be said every morning and evening. Neolin's greatest work was the "Great Book of Writing", a chart in which he mapped the path a person’s soul took to get to the Indian heaven.
Prophet
In religion, a prophet, from the Greek word προφήτης profitis meaning "foreteller", is an individual who is claimed to have been contacted by the supernatural or the divine, and serves as an intermediary with humanity, delivering this newfound knowledge from the supernatural entity to other people...
of the Lenni Lenape
Lenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
, who was derided by the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
as "The Imposter." Beginning in 1762, Neolin believed that the native people needed to reject European goods and abandon dependency on foreign settlers in order to return to a more traditional lifestyle. He made arguments against alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
, materialism
Materialism
In philosophy, the theory of materialism holds that the only thing that exists is matter; that all things are composed of material and all phenomena are the result of material interactions. In other words, matter is the only substance...
, and polygamy
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
. Neolin emphasized that the favor of God in blessing the Indians with game to hunt would be spoiled if they did not forsake their evil collusion with the alien white men. Neolin's most famous follower was Pontiac
Chief Pontiac
Pontiac or Obwandiyag , was an Ottawa leader who became famous for his role in Pontiac's Rebellion , an American Indian struggle against the British military occupation of the Great Lakes region following the British victory in the French and Indian War. Historians disagree about Pontiac's...
.
In 1761 Neolin went through a period of fasting, incantation and dreaming. It was then that he saw his purpose was to go see the Master of Life (or Great Spirit). The Master of Life told him that the path to Heaven was to reject the ways of the European Americans and to return to the traditional way of living (the ways of their ancestors). Primarily he mentions to stop drinking alcohol, participate in respectful monogamous relationships and sexual abstinence, live by the bow and arrow, and to dress themselves in animal skins.
The Master of Life also called for the American Indians to drive the British settlers out of their land. This is why he allied with Pontiac on a military campaign.
There is great resemblance between the religion that Neolin introduced to the Lenni Lenape and Christianity, probably because of the exposure of Christianity through missionaries.
Around 1761, hundreds of Ohio Indians became disciples of the Indian visionary Neolin (meaning "The Enlightened One," in Algonquian). The core of Neolin's teachings was that Indians had been corrupted by European ways and needed to purify themselves by returning to their traditions and preparing for a holy war. "Drive them out," he declared of the settlers. A confederacy of tribes organized by a group of chiefs who had gained influence by adopting Neolin's ideas laid plans for a coordinated attack against the British in the spring of 1763. The principal figure among them was the Ottawa chief Pontiac, renowned as an orator and political leader. This combination of inspirational religious and political leadership was a pattern in the long history of Indian resistance to colonial expansion in North America.
In 1762, Neolin was shown a prayer by the Master of Life, to be said every morning and evening. Neolin's greatest work was the "Great Book of Writing", a chart in which he mapped the path a person’s soul took to get to the Indian heaven.